Oakland Zoo removes Ten Commandments monument

(07-25) 16:58 PDT Oakland -- Oakland Zoo officials on Wednesday removed a monument from zoo property that a group of atheists objected to because it featured the Ten Commandments.

Joel Parrott, the zoo's executive director, said that the stone plaque marking Christian tradition was at odds with a zoo - and a diverse region.

"We try to be very sensitive to the community, so that we can be inclusive," said Parrott. "This wasn't the right location for that type of thing."

The plaque would not have been seen by most patrons of the zoo, which is owned by the city but is run by the nonprofit East Bay Zoological Society. It was behind the Snow Building, which is used by a variety of people for special events, particularly weddings.

That's how Joey Piscitelli came to see it. He rented the building for his daughter's wedding in 2008. The self-described atheist found out too late that the best shot for a photo looking over the bay also had the 6-foot tall Ten Commandments plaque.

"If I had wanted to rent a building with the Ten Commandments on it, I would have rented a church," said Piscitelli, who is known to many as one of the Bay Area's main advocates for victims of abuse by priests.

He complained in 2008 and this year, to no avail. He and other atheists had scheduled a protest at the zoo for this Sunday, which they now have called off.

"It's hardly the place to proselytize religion," he said. "They recognized it's the wrong thing to have it there and they made a wise decision."

Parrott said the plaque had been on the site since 1966, when the land was a state park. In 1977, it became a city park, Knowland Park. He said sensitivity for visitors was the only reason for its removal.

"It was never unconstitutional or illegal and it wasn't removed for legal reasons," he said.

Supervising Deputy City Attorney Mark Morodomi had sent Piscitelli a letter defending the monument. His letter states that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a similar monument on public property was Constitutional.